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Storms of My Grandchildren: The Truth about the Coming Climate Catastrophe and Our Last Chance to Save Humanity
by
James Hansen
n Storms of My Grandchildren, Dr. James Hansen—the nation’s leading scientist on climate issues—speaks out for the first time with the full truth about global warming: The planet is hurtling even more rapidly than previously acknowledged to a climatic point of no return.
Although the threat of human-caused climate change is now widely recognized, politicians hav...more
Although the threat of human-caused climate change is now widely recognized, politicians hav...more
Hardcover
Published
by Bloomsbury UK
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This is the best book yet written covering the global warming issue. It is the first book from the preminent scientist in the field, a man who has been studiying the science involved for more than 35 years. He is the expert of experts on the technical issues concerned.
He is very clear in the book about what we know and what we don't know.
One thing we do know is that the West Antarctic ice sheet is going to collapse if CO2 emissions are not curtailed. We don't yet know when the colla...more
He is very clear in the book about what we know and what we don't know.
One thing we do know is that the West Antarctic ice sheet is going to collapse if CO2 emissions are not curtailed. We don't yet know when the colla...more
Jonathan
rated it
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review of another edition
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review of another edition
Recommends it for:
anyone wondering about climate science
Shelves:
science
This book was hard to follow at times, but worth the effort. It's probably the most comprehensive explanation of climate science for the lay person. Hansen is one of the world's most eminent climate scientists. The book is partly autobiographical as he recounts meetings with presidents and NASA administrators. Most of it is filled with scientific explanations, though. I learned a great deal from it, particularly because I used to be in the climate change denialist camp.
The sad thing is...more
The sad thing is...more
Storms of my Grandchildren: The Truth about the Coming Climate Catastrophe and Our Last Chance to Save Humanity by James Hansen
"Storms of my Grandchildren" is a book about the science, history, politics and recommendations on how to address the global warming reality of our planet. This 320-page book is composed of the following eleven chapters: 1. The Vice President's Climate Task Force, 2. The A-Team and the Secretary's Quandary, 3. A Visit to the White House, 4. Time Wa...more
"Storms of my Grandchildren" is a book about the science, history, politics and recommendations on how to address the global warming reality of our planet. This 320-page book is composed of the following eleven chapters: 1. The Vice President's Climate Task Force, 2. The A-Team and the Secretary's Quandary, 3. A Visit to the White House, 4. Time Wa...more
James Hansen is possibly the best-known climate scientist around, as famous for what he wasn't allowed to say as what he did say. He has been an accomplished researcher and a strong voice for taking actions to avert climate change.
This book is an unhappy combination of climate science primer and political memoir. The science is fairly intense (not hard, but he doesn't waste time getting to details) but scattered and the political memoir is, frankly, boring. It is an important book i...more
This book is an unhappy combination of climate science primer and political memoir. The science is fairly intense (not hard, but he doesn't waste time getting to details) but scattered and the political memoir is, frankly, boring. It is an important book i...more
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Good but sometimes a bit technical.
The book is somewhat autobiographical, following Hansens's career and showing how the climate science developed into our current understanding about global warming. Hansen paints a pretty scary picture of our future if we continue to burn all the fossil fuels in the ground.
When these global warming books turn to our options for dealing with the situation I usually start to lose interest because it is so daunting and so politically imposs...more
The book is somewhat autobiographical, following Hansens's career and showing how the climate science developed into our current understanding about global warming. Hansen paints a pretty scary picture of our future if we continue to burn all the fossil fuels in the ground.
When these global warming books turn to our options for dealing with the situation I usually start to lose interest because it is so daunting and so politically imposs...more
This book has a lot of boring politics, but makes up for it with superb explanations of climate science.
Hansen insists he doesn't mean to fear monger, but goes on to use terms like global catastrophe, end of the world, a planet in peril, death of the planet, etc. These emotionally charged terms seem totally out of place in his otherwise sane presentation of scientific information.
He obviously knows little to nothing about biology or astronomy, because he states over and o...more
Hansen insists he doesn't mean to fear monger, but goes on to use terms like global catastrophe, end of the world, a planet in peril, death of the planet, etc. These emotionally charged terms seem totally out of place in his otherwise sane presentation of scientific information.
He obviously knows little to nothing about biology or astronomy, because he states over and o...more
"Greenwashing, expressing concern about global warming and the environment while taking no actions to actually stabilize climate or preserve the environment, is prevalent in the United States and other countries, even those presumed to be the "greenest."
"If the sun becomes brighter, it is a climate forcing that would tend to make earth warmer. A human-made change of atmospheric composition is also a climate forcing."
"The largest human-made clima...more
"If the sun becomes brighter, it is a climate forcing that would tend to make earth warmer. A human-made change of atmospheric composition is also a climate forcing."
"The largest human-made clima...more
An important book -- and while it is cliché to say "<some book> is a 'must read'", James Hansen's "Storms Of My Grandchildren" really is one. Dr. Hansen does an excellent job explaining and fitting together the many puzzle pieces of anthropogenic climate change: the what & why of greenhouse gases, changing weather patterns (intensity/deluge/drought), and atmospheric & oceanic warming (and acidification). Also, where things are unknown/uncertain/conflicting, Dr. Hansen s...more
This should be required reading for political leaders, who continue to ignore the coming climate catastrophe. There is a lot of climate science here, and some of it is difficult to follow, but the effort is worth it. You will learn a lot about the way the sun works, the orbit of the earth, and the feedbacks, many of them difficult to anticipate and analyze, that complicate the climate issue. The book actually works best as an indictment of the role of money in politics. The book is scary, and so...more
After reading Richard Heinberg's "The Party's Over," an excellent dissection of our current energy predicament, I vowed to take a break from "heavy" books and read something a tad lighter. I broke my vow, deciding instead to read James Hansen's "Storms of My Grandchildren," a brilliant walk through the science of global warming and the evidence that we are on the precipice of catastrophic environmental problems.
I couldn't resist another heavy book, because I c...more
I couldn't resist another heavy book, because I c...more
Very hard to rate with a number between one and five. It is a topic of literally vital importance and I give it five stars because of the function the book intends to serve. It is written by one of the world's leading climate researchers. Rather than discussing the science (which I expected, but there's only one chapter on it) he goes into detail about how the science is getting blocked on the policy level. Given that atmospheric CO2 has increased more than 30% since 1960 and human policy is now...more
Hansen deals unflinchingly with the tricky intersections where science collides with policy. One dramatic change this book had on me is my view of nuclear power: along with Beyond Oil and $20 Per Gallon, this book has made me see that we are going to need efficient nuclear power that reuses 99% of its waste to replace fossil fuels, especially coal, for electricity generation. Another important point Hansen convinces me of is that preventing a new Ice Age is a trivial matter (no more than a few f...more
In Greek mythology, Cassandra was granted the gift of prophecy but was later cursed so that no one would ever believe her predictions. When she foresaw the destruction of Troy, she was unable to do anything to prevent or forestall these tragedies despite her desperate warnings and pleas.
It seems to me that James Hansen is a modern-day Cassandra. He knows, through the gifts of hard work and science, that civilization is causing its own demise through its obsessive compulsion to burn ...more
It seems to me that James Hansen is a modern-day Cassandra. He knows, through the gifts of hard work and science, that civilization is causing its own demise through its obsessive compulsion to burn ...more
"Ladies and gentlemen, your governments are lying through their teeth." Now 70, famed NASA scientist and whistleblower James Hansen has nothing to loose but the future of our grandchildren - and the earth. Hansen navigates a plethora of data, graphs, explanations and personal anecdotes describing why climate change is a real and immediate threat to all species on earth. And why little of substance is being done. Besides an explanation of why the scientific evidence is being distorted ...more
Rarely has an author of a nonfiction science book genuflected before the alter of his own experiences. While I agree with many of Hansen's conclusions -- particularly about the worrisome implication that CO2 emissions shouldn't exceed 350ppm (they're already at 390) -- and appreciate his contributions to climate science, the many excessively-worded vignettes based on this or that meeting or speech given by the author grew tiresome. I appreciate Hansen's motivations and desire to save the world f...more
"Greenwashing, expressing concern about global warming and the environment while taking no actions to actually stabilize climate or preserve the environment, is prevalent in the United States and other countries, even those presumed to be the "greenest."
"If the sun becomes brighter, it is a climate forcing that would tend to make earth warmer. A human-made change of atmospheric composition is also a climate forcing."
"The largest human-made clima...more
"If the sun becomes brighter, it is a climate forcing that would tend to make earth warmer. A human-made change of atmospheric composition is also a climate forcing."
"The largest human-made clima...more
This manifesto by the director of NASA's Goddard Space Institute is a difficult, distubing read. I'm not sure what is more frightening: Hansen's descriptions of an imbroglio at NASA in which he butted heads with its public affairs office (the head of which had formerly held positions in public relations for Southern Company, the second-largest holding company of coal-burning utilities in the United States) and entailed the amazing disappearing mission statement (NASA's mission statement was surr...more
The content of this book is great, even though it's hard to get through. If you read it conscientiously, as I did, there is a lot of technical stuff and terms which I hadn't encountered elsewhere -- like "climate forcings." So this isn't just your rehash of "An Inconvenient Truth."
But if you stick with it, it's really educational and motivational. He talks about the possibility of a runaway greenhouse effect in which the Earth essentially turns into a planet like Venus. H...more
But if you stick with it, it's really educational and motivational. He talks about the possibility of a runaway greenhouse effect in which the Earth essentially turns into a planet like Venus. H...more
He hates Washington. He hates cap and trade.
If we go on as we are until all fossil fuels are gone, sea level will rise 250 feet, maybe a billion people will be displaced, 20% of species will go extinct, and weather will be unstable, so our agricultural and industrial output will suffer for generations. Life will suck. Then we'll turn into Venus. So most reserves must be left in the ground.
He recommends:
1. Eliminating coal-burning plants by 2030
2. A carbo...more
If we go on as we are until all fossil fuels are gone, sea level will rise 250 feet, maybe a billion people will be displaced, 20% of species will go extinct, and weather will be unstable, so our agricultural and industrial output will suffer for generations. Life will suck. Then we'll turn into Venus. So most reserves must be left in the ground.
He recommends:
1. Eliminating coal-burning plants by 2030
2. A carbo...more
This is a powerful book to read. This definitely made me feel the need to investigate and get more active in climate change discussion (and action). It was very readable, and overall well laid out. Some aspects of the book felt a bit redundant, and there were a few diversions throughout the text. The personable writing style (and even apologies for diversions) and urgency of the climate issues raised made it forgivable.
Brilliant and important man with an urgent message; I give five stars for what he has to say. Unfortunately, he is not the most engaging writer and in the first few chapters that deal with technical matters are a bit dry and that draged my overall rating down a bit.
Great book by THE MAN on climate change. A solid background in earth science is helpful and knowing a bit about heat transfer would help too. It's not a light read, but there are enough personal stories and other anecdotes to keep workload manageable.
Guy writes like a scientist, but gets his point across, whatever the lack of eloquence. I officially apologize for wearing that 'Pave the Rainforest' shirt I made all those years ago. This book scared the shit out of me.
As a climate scientist, the book did not tell me anything new about the science, yet the inside history of the developments was quite enjoyable. Must read for everyone involved in climate science...
I have felt the need to understand more about climate change for some time now. I wanted to become informed on the science and the policies, and this book did a good job of explaining both.
One of the better planetary science books written. Found a lot of useful and relevant observations with some great arguments for changing our ways. Would recommend.
Hansen is a scientist turned modern day prophet. Must read for anyone who cares about the future of our world and her children.
I read the Kindle version, which is probably not the best format for this book as it has a lot of charts and graphs which are hard to see on Kindle. Nevertheless, the content of this book is fascinating and helps to make sense of the question of global warming. James Hansen comes across as a sincere scientist who wants to avert disaster by getting the message out soon enough. The science and writing style is sometimes a little hard to follow at times, but despite this I understood a great deal o...more
We need to act *now* to avert disastrous climate change. Worse yet, we might kill off not only ourselves, but all life on earth.
A must read if you are concerned about global warming. Well organized and presented. Excellent documentation.
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